Cylinder-lock.



No. s5i,|so. Patented June 5, I900;

w L. CARTER.

- CYL|NDER.LOCK.

(Application Med Dec. 26, 1899.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

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w R Em NR M 8 IL Y c 0 B m 6 0 N (Application filed Dec. 26, 18994 2Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

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PATEN 1 FEICE'.

LAWRENCE CARTER, OF RUTHERFORD, NE\V JERSEY. I

CYLINDER-LOCK.

- 's'rEcIEIcATIoN forming part of Letters Patent No. 651,130, dated June5, 1900.

Application filed December 26, 1899. Serial No. 741,628. (No model.)

To (tZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, LAWRENCE CARTER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Rutherford, in the county of Bergen and State of New Jersey,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Cylinder-Locks, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to cylinder-locks of the class in which thetumblers are trapped, one object of the invention being to providesafeguards against the picking of the lock and to also, if desired,furnish telltale means whereby a person with the true key is enabled toknow whether the lock has been tampered with or not. Further objects areto provide a lock which is simple and efficient and which is moreespecially adapted for the doors of safety-vaults, as well as of courseto doors in general.

The invention consists of a lock which comprises a cylinder providedwith means for trapping the tumblers, a barrel adapted to turn in thecylinder, said barrel and cylinder having intermeshiug screw threads,and

threaded tumblers sliding longitudinally in the barrel and adapted to beactuated by the true key, so that the same may be caused to move in suchposition that the barrel may be turned and the bolt retracted.

The invention also consists of certain other features of constructionand combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and then claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of a lockembodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a top view of the same. Fig. 3 is arear view. Fig. 4. is a section on line 4 4, Fig. 1, parts beinginelevation. Fig. 5 is a similar section showing the tumblers actuated bythe true key. Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section on line 6 6, Fig. 1,showing the parts in the position they assume when the bolt isretracted. Fig. 7 is a transverse section on the line 7 7, Fig. 6,looking toward the front end of the barrel. Fig. Sis a transversesection on'the same line lookingtoward the rear end of the barrel, asindicated by the arrows; and Fig. 9 is a section on line 9 9, Fig. 6.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

Referring to the drawings, A indicates the cylinder of the lock, whichis set in a mortised opening in the door 0 or is secured to thelock-case if there be one and is secured thereto by means of set-screwsb, which pass through the flange a of the cylinder and into the door andalso through the flange b of the der A'is formed with screw-threads a,which are broken out of a portion of the cylinder by a longitudinal trapopening or recess a formedin the cylinder. A longitudinal trap openingor recess a is formed also in the cylinder at a point approximatelydiametrically opposite to trap-openin g a It will therefore :beunderstood that the screw-threads are not continuous around the interiorof the cylinder, but are segmental.

D indicates the rotary barrel, which turns within the cylinder A B andis formed with exterior screw-threads d, which mesh with the threads a.A longitudinal guideway d is formed in the threaded surface of thebarrel D, soas to receive a tumbler or a set of tumblers E, which slidelongitudinally therein, and which are provided with threads 6, that areadapted to form continuations of the segmental threads d of the barrel.The said tumblers E are in the nature of threaded sections, which aresliced, as it were, from the threaded barrel, so that when the threadedsections are all in proper register a continuous thread is formed. (SeeFig. 5.) Said tumblers are adapted to register with the trap a and thetrap a for the purpose hereinafter described.

Ontov the forward end of the barrel D is fixed a cap F, which isprovided with a keyhole f to admit the key I, so that its bitted end 7cut true to produce the proper sliding movements of the tumblers E, mayengage the outer ends of the said tumblers. f indicates a set-screw,which secures the said cap F to the barrel D, and the head of whichserves as a contact projection for striking the stops 12 12 which limitthe movements of the key in turning in both directions, and definethereby the locked and unlocked positions.

The tumblers E are provided at their inner ends with longitudinal pinsg, around which helical springs g, which press the tumblers into theirforward position, (shown in Fig. 4,) are arranged, said springs beingretained by and the said pins being guided through holes g in anabutment or shoulder g closing the inner end of the guideway d in thebarrel D. These springs are compressed by the tumblers when the key ispushed against the tumblers.

Bolt l-I, guided on the door, is suitably connected with the barrel forprojection and re traction thereby. The means shown for m oving thebolt, by the construction substantially as described, are susceptible ofvarious modifications, which will suggest themselves to persons skilledin the art, and I do not therefore limit myself to the construction nowto be described.

J indicates an eccentric which is mounted loosely on the inner end ofthe barrel D, it being confined against motion longitudinally of thebarrel by means of a collarK, secured to the barrel at one side of theeccentric by a set-screw 7c and a collar K,which is secured to thebarrel at the opposite side of the eccenwasher which clamps down uponsaid 001 lar K, and thereby confines it. A strap L passes loosely aroundthe eccentric J, it being arranged between the flange j and aflangeringj of the eccentric, an arm L, secured to the eccentric-strapby a screw Z, connecting the said strap with the bolt H, which isprovided with a screw-threaded stud or pin h, which passes through ahole in the armvL and onto which is screwed a nut 1, between which andthe arm a helical spring Z coiled around said pin h, is confined.

Eccentric J has on its flange j about finger or projection m, whichhangs over the outer periphery of the strap L and rides thereupon, andinasmuch as the eccentric has a certain turning movement, to bedescribed, the finger m limits such movement in one direction bystriking and being retained by a snap-spring m, secured to the strap L,and in the other direction by striking and being retained bya'snap-spring m A dog N, pivoted at n to the eccentric-confining collar K,is of elbow shape and projects forwardly, so that its toe 07. may rideover a curved or segmental track 0, provided with a beveled end 0 andarranged concentric with the axis of the barrel D and spanning the innerend of the trap-opening a The ,said dog carries an interfering-piece Nof yoke shape, the broad engaging end of which is adapted to take intonotches p in the sliding tumblers. The proper registration of thenotches p is only possible when the true key is inserted into the lock,and then the said interfering-piece will take thereinto anactuating-spring N serving to that end. When the dog N is turned withthe barrel to the end of the track 0, its latch end N is caused to takeinto a notch 19' in the under side of the eccentric, located at acertain distance from the finger m.

The operation is as follows: To draw the bolt, the true key I isinserted into the keyhole f and the ends of the tumblers E, e11- gagedby the bitted end of the key, the tumblers being pushed in as far aspermitted by the end of the barrel D, with which the. key comes incontact. The tumblers will thus be slid in longitudinally of the barreland their segmental threads e caused to register properly with thesegmental threads (1 of the barrel, so that a circumferential helicalthread that is to say, a screw-thread-is formed. By turning the key forthe purpose of unlocking the threaded portions of the tumblers will beengaged with the threaded surface of the cylinder A, and when the key isturned so far as that all the tumblers are engaged they will be retainedby the intermeshing threads in inward position, so that their springscannot return them to their normal position. The bridge or track 0 ispreferably of such length as thatits tapering or beveled end is locatedat a point corresponding with the point when the last tumbler engageswith the threaded cyl- V inder A for the purpose of permitting the dog Nwhen it moves to such end to be acted on by its spring N in such way asto cause its latch end N to take into the notch 13 of the eccentric J.The moment the dog interlocks, as it were, with the eccentric J itdisengages the finger or projection on from its retainingspring m, andas the key is turned still farther to the right the eccentric is carriedaround, which, acting on the strap L and arm L, retracts the bolt. Thebolt will be fully retracted when the set-screwf strikes the stop 11 andthe finger m engaged by snap-spring m (See Figs. 6 to 9.) When the keyis turned back to lock the door, the bolt is projected, the finger onagain engaged by spring m, the dog caused to enter upon the track 0 andbe disengaged from the eccentric, and when the parts are turned so thatset-screwf will strike stop b and the key has been withdrawn the springsg, acting on the tumblers, will return them to normal position, and thedoor or other closure cannot be opened, as by picking the lock, untilthe proper or true key has been used again.

Should an attempt be made to pick the lock, the parts will act in thefollowing manner: The picking-tool will be pushed, say, against thefirst tumbler, if there be more than one tumbler, and an attempt made toturn the barrel, so that the manipulated tumbler will be retained. Nowas all the tumblers have a sliding movement beyond the registeringposition for the threads the person picking does not know positivelywhether the tumbler has engaged in the right position or not; but he maysuppose, owing to the partial rotation he has succeeded in obtaining,that he is successful so far. The picking-tool is now pressed againstthe next tumbler, the barrel turned, and then against the next and thebarrel turned, until'all the tumblers are retained and the springs haveno action on them. Now it is almost beyond the bounds of possibilitythat he has pushed all the tumblers to their right position. If they arenot in such position, then the dog N will not engage with the eccentricJ, owing -to the fact that the interfering-piece N cannot engage withthe notches p. Instead, however, the interfering-piece N will bear uponthose portions of the tumblers located at one or the other side of thenotches p, and the spring N cannot force the dog into the notch'p, thisbeing absolutely necessary in order to retract the bolt. The personpicking will now turn the barrel around as far as possible, and when ithas reached the limit of its motion the tumblers will register withtrap-opening a corresponding with trap-openinga The manipulator willprobably receive the impression that he can now open the door, but thesprings of the tumblers have forced them back to their normal positionand he is barred against turning the barrel in either direction.Should'a person with a true key now endeavor to turn the barrel tounlock the door it will not turn, as it has already been turned fromlocked to unlocked position; but it can be turned back to properposition, and then when a reverse turn is given the lock will operate.In this way warning will be given that the lock has been tampered with.

I desire it understood that I do not limit myself to the exactconstruction shown, as the invention resides mainly in constructing ascrew-threaded barrel with tumblers having corresponding threadportions, which barrel turns within a screw-threaded cylinder and issuitably connected with the bolt.

Having thus described my invention, what Iclaim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a look, the combination with a cylinder, interiorly screw-threadedand having a trap-opening, of a rotary barrel, exteriorlyscrew-threaded, and tumblers guided in the barrel and having threadportions, for com pleting the circumferential helical thread, that is tosay the screw-thread around the barrel, said barrel being suitablyconnected with the bolt, substantially as set forth.

2. In a lock, the combination with an interiorly-sorew-threaded cylinderconstructed with means to trap the tumblers, of anexteriorly-screw-threaded barrel, provided with a longitudinal guideway,and tumblers guided in said way and provided with thread portions forcompleting the screw-thread of the barrel, substantially as set forth.

3. In a lock, the combination with an in-' teriorly-screw-threadedcylinder constructed with means for trapping the tumblers, of a barrelexteriorly screw-threaded, spring-actuated tumblers guidedlongitudinally along said barrel, and provided with thread por tions forcompleting the screw-thread of the barrel, the bolt, and mechanismconnecting the barrel and bolt, whereby the bolt is adapted to beretracted, substantially as set forth.

4. In a lock, the combination with an in teriorly-screw=threadedcylinder, constructed with means to trap the tumblers, of an eXte=riorly-screw-threaded barrel, provided with sliding tumblers, havingthread portions for completing the screw-thread of the barrel, the bolt,mechanism connecting the barrel and bolt, for retracting the said bolt,means controlled by the tumblers for causing the operation of theretracting mechanism upon the insertion of the true key, and means forinterfering with the said controlling means and thereby the operation ofsaid retracting mechanism, substantially as set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoingas my invention I have signed myname in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LAWRENCE CARTER. Witnesses:

M. H. WURTZEL, GEO. L. WHEnLooK.

